Re-assessment of national energy codes in Jordan in terms of energy consumption and solar right in residential buildings

The need for energy efficiency codes is increasing worldwide due to the continual decrease in the non-renewable energy resources such as fossil fuels. The time has come to improve the utilization of sustainable energy resources such as solar energy, wind, and water. In Jordan, the need for developing energy codes manifests itself because of the great dependency on non-renewable resources which is considered a great obstacle against the national economy strategy. This paper tests the Jordanian energy efficiency codes, whether they are effective in finding solutions to provide comfortable indoor environment with the least dependency on technical and mechanical solutions. The paper selected some items in the current Jordanian energy efficiency code that deal with solar energy, in terms of heating and cooling loads, to find optimal solutions for better building performance. It focuses on the setback regulations in the Greater Amman Municipality in Jordan to show how these regulations affect households in obtaining their solar rights. Computer simulation conducted by DEROB-LTH (Building Energy Software Tools Directory) was utilized to test the existing regulations to explore their effectiveness and efficiency in obtaining the solar right in residential buildings. The results show that the existing regulations are not successful in providing the apartment blocks in Amman with their solar energy right. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.